Meeting Cancelled
by Leodyne of the North
Summary: Jumin Han is not the sort of man who appreciates his schedule changing without notice. Especially when he doesn't know who is behind it...


A/N: Long time no see everyone! Really long time...but I've been entranced by the muse of the lovely chat-with-pretty-boys smartphone game. This time, the writing bug was only oneshot worth, so no wait on end of the story!

Light and fluffy and a good read if the clock is counting down the minutes until you go home!

Enjoy!

Jaehee took a shuddering breath, hoping it would settle some of her nerves. Had Mr. Han's door always been this large? It was tall and dark, like the man who worked behind it but had it always been so intimidating? She hugged the phone to her chest tightly, trying to think of a way, any way, she could renege on her promise. The chat had started out so pleasant, but then that reckless man entered at the worst possible time…

No, she couldn't go back on her word. Not this time. So she squared her shoulders, mustered up all the confidence her years of judo could spare and knocked on the door. It sounded like a small, feeble intrusion to her and she pushed open the heavy wooden door, poking her head into the luxurious office.

"Mr. Han?" she said, trying to remember what her normal, non-deceiving voice sounded like. "I have that quarterly report on the winery you mentioned in last week's meeting."

Jumin Han, director and heir to C&R International sat in an office that was unapologetically pompous with a wall of windows gazing over Seoul's metropolis. The dark-haired man ignored the breathtaking view as he shuffled through the stack of papers spread over the grandiose desk. He didn't look up as he replied, "I am still working on the partnership with the Oil Prince, Assistant Kang. I trust you can take care of it."

It was a trap. He had figured it out, checked in on the messenger, caught her in the act. She was going to lose her job and Mr. Han would ensure she would never work in the country again. Before she had a chance to flee, Zen's words came to her, "Just imagine you're on stage. It's all a performance. The trust fund jerk is just an ignorant audience member." She set her jaw and took a step forward.

It wasn't until she was halfway to the desk that she found the words she had been practicing in the hall, "Actually, there was a discrepancy that I couldn't account for. Could you please take a look at it?"

Jumin still hadn't looked up. "I am busy Assistant Kang. Have the wine owner send you his records for the last quarter and remake the report yourself."

She felt her shoulders slump a little more under the weight of the extra work, but while burdensome, it was not unexpected. "I believe it has to do with the new...vintage under production," she said, stopping in front of him, eyeing a dark brown leather book laying open near his elbow.

He took the bait and looked up, setting several sheets of crowded reports down. Small victory as he held out his hand expectantly and Jaehee realized she was on the wrong side of the desk. They locked gazes for a moment and he raised an eyebrow. Flustered, she whipped it out to him and he plucked it from her, looking over the numbers impassively.

Jaehee crossed her arms, like any natural human would, and boldly made her way around the corner of the desk, willing herself not to glance down at her hand. As she made her way to her target, she distracted herself with trying to casually look at the papers he had been scouring over only to find them written in Arabic. She squinted, trying to discern the individual characters beyond the fake lenses of her glasses.

"Assistant Kang?" the question interrupted her thought process.

She turned to face him. "Yes, Mr. Ha-"

The reply that was embedded into her brain fell away as she realized how close they were. Her hip was almost brushing his armrest. He was leaning away slightly and looking up at her, frowning in confusion. It was a slight frown and she might not have seen it, had she not been so uncomfortably, invadingly close.

Jaehee would wonder later if her gulp was as audible to him as it was to her. "Yes...Mr. Han?" she said again, trying to keep the dismay from cracking her voice.

He held the paper up between them. It brushed her arm and she took it from him, her arm bent at an awkward angle.

"If there is a problem with the report, it is not with the new product. Call the owner and get the quarterly reports for the last five years. Then restructure them into annual reports."

"Yes, Mr. Han," she breathed out and took a quick step back and hurried out of the room, feeling his eyes on her back and nearly slamming the door behind her. She deflated against the thick wood, closing her eyes and whispering a Hail Mary under her breath. Then she pulled herself upright and walked numbly down the hallway as she stared at her phone in horror at what she'd done.

The sky was just beginning to darken when Jumin put the papers aside with a small sigh. He tilted his head once to the left and once to the right to loosen the muscles that had tightened over the last few hours. Without sparing more than a breath for a pause between work, he looked down at his schedule, knitting his brow in disappointment. There were still six meetings to be had, one of which was off-site. He spared himself a small glance out on the sprawling city, taking note of the hour and calculating just how close to midnight he would be returning home.

When the time he came up with displeased him, he pulled his phone from his jacket pocket and opened up the familiar messenger. Expecting the normal, jaunty music and intricate patterns, he was surprised to find it open to a simple black screen with the text "ERR0R! TECHNICALLY DIFFICULT TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES!1!1" scrolling across the screen in bold, red letters. He sighed again but tucked it away and stood, buttoning his jacket as he made his way to the door and to his first meeting.

When he got to the room, it was unexpectedly dark. The door was locked and there was no one inside from what little he could glean from the narrow window. He looked at his phone but there were no new notifications and his calendar clearly showed a meeting with the board of directors in Room 4 at five o'clock. He ignored the messenger and dialed Assistant Kang's number directly.

"This is Jaehee Kang, assistant to Jumin Han," came her automatic answer.

"Assistant Kang, the meeting with the board-"

"Please leave a message at the tone or contact C&R directly at…" Her voice trailed off as he looked at the machine in his hand with renewed annoyance. There must be a malfunction with his phone; Assistant Kang was never unavailable. He redialed the number and got the same, unhelpful, automated message. Unsure of what to do, he returned to his office and checked his schedule once more. There was no mistake. In his assistant's neat, legible handwriting the meeting was set to start right at five o'clock.

He opened one of his bottom drawers and pulled out the C&R Directory. Flipping through it, eyes darting back and forth between the catchwords on the upper corners, he spread it open to the Director's Page and chose one at random, dialing the man's number. After a few rings, a female voice answered, "Mr. Kwon's office."

"This is Jumin Han," he said, the words sounding odd to him. He was unaccustomed to making his own phone calls. "I would like to talk to Mr. Kwan."

A pause. "I'm sorry Mr. Han," the small voice said, "He's gone home for the night."

"Already? What about the board meeting?"

Another pause. Longer, this time. "He left when it was cancelled."

Cancelled? Impossible.

"Impossible. We have the board meeting at five on Thursdays. Kwan knows that." Jumin closed the directory and began drumming them quietly over the glossy cover. "Who cancelled the meeting?"

"I-I'm not sure," the assistant said, "It didn't come through me, sir. The call went directly to Mr. Kwan."

"Hmm…" he said, hanging up. He would have Assistant Kang look into it when she got back or the messenger was fixed. Perhaps some members of the board were not as dedicated as they should be. Once a week was not much to ask of department heads and he would be sure to emphasize that at the next meeting. Maybe increase the frequency to twice a week so he could keep a closer eye on their projects and progress.

He put a small ' **x** ' next to _B o D R4 5:00_. The next meeting was with the CEO of BIC. He called up the stationery conglomerate and spoke to another assistant. "I'm sorry Mr. Han. We received word from your office this afternoon that the meeting was rescheduled to next week."

Jumin drummed his fingers more insistently against the desktop. "Who called you?" he asked bluntly.

A moment of shuffling papers and typing from the other end of the phone line. "I'm sorry Mr. Han it doesn't say. Our afternoon receptionist took the call. I can ask him about it tomorrow."

Tomorrow was a day too late but he assented and told her to call when she knew. Assistant Kang was still not answering his calls or replying to his e-mails and the chat was still not open. Literally. The message had changed to "STILL NOT OPEN!11!". He wanted to call Luciel directly about it, but realized the only way of contacting him was through the now faulty application. Gritting his teeth, he moved down the list.

 _BIC R7 6:00_ **x**

He called ahead for his next two meetings hoping to move them earlier; both the pharmaceutical giant Tiaranol and a local golf merchant were finalizing agreements with C&R in distribution with eventual partnering on the table. And both offices replied that other arrangements had been made due to the cancellation of the evening's talks by C&R. He thanked them for their time and no longer satisfied with mere fidgeting, prowled his office like an agitated tiger in a cage, disregarding that his cage was at the top of the tallest building in the country with an unparalleled view.

 _T Pharm Dev Lab 1 7:00_ **x**

 _Golf Dist Cen 8:00_ **x**

A few minutes later, a sharp 'ping!' sounded from his phone. He snatched it up and glared at the screen. An e-mail. Finally, some answers for why Assistant Kang had apparently lost her phone… or her mind. But when he opened it, the subject line read, "Camel Racingg!"

Dear my goood freind Jumin Han,

Thank you for cancel our calll this morning! I so very surprised to know! But also I so very hapy! My son is driving in camel races today and sinse I am not buzy, I go see him! It will wonderful time! So very wonderful!

I wish my dear goood freind Jumin Han so very wonderful time too!

Let us talk week to come, yes?

Jumin narrowed his eyes, both out of displeasure and out of trying to decode the man's admirable efforts at English. Assistant Kang hadn't know about his video conference with His Majesty. The note on his schedule had been made by his own hand when he was meeting with the prince last month. But she was an intelligent woman; likely she had picked up some Arabic since working alongside him for the last four years.

 _O.P. 9:00_ **x**

He stared down at the list of wasted time and effort. It was nearly five-thirty but nothing had been accomplished and thirty minutes of his time had been wasted trying to track down his soon to be demoted-assistant and getting his own schedule under control. He got up and stalked to a corner of the office, away from the window which was showing the slow but sure gradation to the navy night sky.

There was a large flat screen television on the wall and he turned it to the news, fully expecting to see some scandal about C&R's reputation or an unprecedented drop in stock value. Something must have happened to cause all of his business associates to distance themselves from any and all interaction with his company. Normally Assistant Kang would alert him to such announcements, but she was proving to be more and more unreliable as the evening progressed.

But the channels were full of trifling things that he would not have labeled news. Gossip mostly, with some weather forecasting. After taking note that there were possible showers due on the weekend he turned off the screen with what only the bravest of people would call a huff and returned to his desk, glaring at the final memo.

 _RamG Rest 10:00_

After paging down to Driver Kim, he put the Arab papers in his briefcase and left the office, walking faster than normal. He did not like this unpredictable schedule. Not one bit. Assistant Kang was going to have a lot to answer for when he found her. This kind of behavior, going behind his back and sabotaging his business relations, was beyond unprofessional. It was unlikely she could continue to hold her position if this is what passed for acceptable in her opinion. His mood darkened as he recalled the tedium of the interview process for new applicants. He pushed the down button and the elevator opened quickly, as if it sensed his seething.

At least he knew that he could salvage the evening by convincing RamG to become the head chef in C&R's in-house restaurant. The man had been coming to RFA events for years and a Magellan-starred restaurant could only improve the company's image as well as make the commute from work to a proper restaurant much more manageable.

The doors opened to his private garage, where his most loyal employee waited for him at the ready. With a gracious nod, he slid into the back seat of the dark, luxurious vehicle; heated seats trying to soothe the tightness in his shoulders. He released a breath he didn't know he'd been holding and closed his eyes. Once he heard Driver Kim behind the wheel, Jumin directed him towards the famous restaurant, Hell's Oven. He let the gentle vibrations of the car rock him to a pleasant doze, intent on relaxing for the half hour it would take to get to the center of the city.

However, it was a mere ten minutes before the car slowed and turned into a garage. When he opened his eyes it was to the familiar line of his own cars. They had arrived at the penthouse. His penthouse, which was very obviously not the Magellan-starred restaurant Hell's Oven.

"Driver Kim," he said, voice low and very, very careful, "Where are we?"

With bravery that only comes from familiarity, the older man didn't seem to pay any mind to his employer's thunderstorm of a mood. "We're at your home, sir," he replied jovially. "Isn't it nice to get home while there's still a bit of color in the sky?"

"I told you to take me downtown."

Driver Kim nodded, "Yes sir. I know you had a meeting down there this evening but-"

"Let me guess," Jumin interrupted, "it was cancelled."

The man gave Jumin a smile in the rearview mirror. "It was indeed, sir."

A growl started to build in his chest. "Must I remind you, Driver Kim, that you do not work for Assistant Kang?"

The smile faded into a look of confusion, then melted into a mysterious look of knowing. "Oh, it wasn't Miss Kang who told me to bring you home, sir."

The order on the tip of his tongue stuck in Jumin's throat like a cherry pit. Not Assistant Kang? Then who?

"It was Mrs. Han, sir."

As the elevator hummed up to the top floor he took a deep breath, parsing out his thoughts and trying to anticipate her motive for obstructing his work in such a jarring manner. It was the end of the quarter so he was understandably busy with the company; she should be accustomed to his responsibilities by now. While her selfishness and impatience was endearing in and of itself, the recklessness with which she acted was disappointing.

Regardless of the intention, the unannounced decimation of his schedule could not be ignored or overlooked. The swirling frustration of the last hour pulled the corners of his mouth down as he began to put together a lecture that properly identified and stressed the damage of her actions and the importance of desisting such acts in the future. The knowledge that he had to be responsible for maring their pleasant evening together soured matters further.

He stepped out onto the polished marble; readying to seek out his wife wherever she had sequestered herself in the sprawling penthouse, but was taken aback as she bustled around the corner in a dark, elegant blue dress that he recognized as one of her new Christmas presents. He made note of how the color complimented her fair complexion before preparing himself to begin the unravelling of the evening.

She interrupted his preparations. "Good! You're here!" She was smiling brightly and the slightest flush of her cheeks made her look ever so lovely. Without giving him time to renew his convictions, she gave him a quick kiss on the corner of his mouth, hands resting lightly on his chest for just a moment. It was an unfamiliar kiss; a combination of greeting, innocence, and haste.

Jumin tried to study her face, but was thwarted as she reached down and took his briefcase and set it on the sideboard in the entryway, exchanging it for a thin, square box that she placed in his hand. It was a good opening to start, equating her flippancy of his work-related materials as a parallel to her lack of respect with his work, but he was suddenly being ushered deeper into the apartment. The sharp sound of her steps drew his attention to her feet where she wore a pair of ankle strap heels, dark and sultry and utterly new to him. While her excitement was rather refreshing, he reminded himself that if he responded positively, her negative behavior would only be reinforced.

Just as he gathered his wits enough to begin resisting the insistent pull on his wrist, they reached the dining room and she released her grip as she made her way into the room. Jumin blinked a few times to let his eyes adjust to the downlighting. The top lights were off with only the ambient glow from the wall lights, lamps, and tapered candles on the dining table to illuminate the balloons and streamers strewn around the room.

A perfectly plaintive "meow~" pulled his attention from the walls to his snow-white angel sitting at the head of the table. She looked at him expectantly, but did not move to greet him. Instead, the large blue eyes watched the beautiful woman approach her and say, "Yes, sweetie. Daddy's home!" After a few delicate scratches on the feline's forehead she continued to the kitchen, circling around the counter and holding the animal's rapt attention.

But Jumin's attention had been drawn upward.

A chic banner draped from the ceiling in curving script read, "Happy Birthday Elizabeth".

He felt his stomach drop and all the anger and frustration morphed into a deep and intense guilt that made him feel two centimeters tall. He had completely forgotten. How could he be so thoughtless?

Jumin walked forward numbly, mindlessly setting the box on the table as he approached the very picture of poise. He knelt down until he was level with the luminescent creature. What a poor excuse for an owner he was. How could she ever forgive him?

"Elizabeth…" he whispered, not able to bring himself to meet her icy blue eyes.

What could he say? Mere apologies would only sound trite and insincere. He could arrange for Assistant Kang to get a present before the evening was through, even though Elizabeth the 3rd was rarely bribed by material things. He ducked his head and pulled out his phone but felt a spike of anger followed by a chilly wave of despair when the dark screen flashed "Happy B-Day My Ellie!1!1!" Luciel had not forgotten about her birthday, like any sane man. He was no longer to look after her himself; perhaps he should call V and-

The man's dark, spiraling thoughts were dashed into pieces as a small, coarse pink tongue reached out and lapped at his nose. Once, twice, three times did Elizabeth the 3rd bless him with her benevolence. Only then did he look up and see only bright stars in her deep, knowing eyes. She blinked at him slowly, before meowing sweetly once more, delicately licking her own paw before settling it back on the rich burgundy cushion.

"Jumin, can you pour the wine while I get dinner on the table," a second sweet voice came from behind the counter. He stood and went to embrace his wonderful wife but was thwarted by her hands laden with food. She dodged his advance with unsettling ease. "Oh no you don't," she said, only half seriously, dancing out of his reach, "the little princess turns into a little demon if she doesn't eat by six. Get the wine and join us at the table."

He watched the woman, _his_ woman, _his perfect, amazing_ wife step lithely around the table, setting down two human-sized plates and one crystal bowl brimming with Elizabeth the 3rd's dinner. True to what had just been said, Elizabeth started pawing at the fabric of the dress, drawing the woman's attention down to her. While a flawless woman coo'ed and stroked a flawless feline, he set about finding the proper glasses for the dark bottle on the table.

There were two bottles, actually. One was larger and unopened, but the other was small and had a small, crystalline cup next to it, filled halfway. Upon closer inspection Jumin saw that there was a tag carefully wrapped around the small neck. It read:

[Dear Mr. Han,

This is the first bottle of our newest "vintage". While the tradition is to drink wine from the year you were born, I hope in this case the month is connection enough.

I hope Elizabeth the 3rd enjoys her birthday wine.

Assistant Kang]

He set down the bottle, taking note of the label, _Pinot Meow_. Elizabeth the 3rd would be a much better choice for advertising cat wine, but that was something that Assistant Kang could fix in distribution. As he set it down carefully, he noticed an assorted row on the counter.

A simple feather toy with the tag [To: Elizabeth the 3rd Han From:Yoosung Kim] and a small, stuffed replica of Luciel. A cursory sniffed revealed it was primed with catnip. He set it down and glared at a bone-shaped chew toy with no need for a tag at the end of the row. Hyun may not be picky with the things that come out of his mouth, but such was not true for the rest of the world.

The sweet complaining "meow~" reminded him that he was keeping some very special members of his family waiting. With practiced dexterity, he poured two human glasses of a luscious red and grabbed the small saucer, handling them and the larger bottle with ease in his long, graceful fingers. Once he got to the table he served Elizabeth the 3rd her wine first, which she sniffed at delicately.

Then he slowly set down the glass for the love of his life, taking great liberties with his proximity and his mouth to try and show her fully what she meant to him. He failed to express the depth of how truly deeply she was _his_ and he was _hers_ , just like every day before, but she accepted his explanation eagerly until they were both short on breath. He leaned in to continue communications, but she giggled and shoo'ed him to the other side of the table where he sat and gazed lovingly at the flush on her cheeks and the way she absentmindedly licked her lips, as if trying to taste him.

Behind her was a strange structure that he hadn't noticed in the dim room. It looked like a dysfunctional bookshelf that would fall over at the lightest breeze. The confusion on his face must have showed because she followed his gaze then rolled her eyes back to him. "That is a present from Mommy," she explained. "But someone preferred the box it came in and had lots of fun with the packing peanuts this afternoon," she said pointedly towards the head of the table. The meow that responded had a proud undertone.

She set the crystal bowl down and Elizabeth the 3rd began her meal as she did all things, with grace and refinement. "Tonight's special dinner is wild Alaskan salmon for all three of us," she announced dutifully, looking at Elizabeth the 3rd with a smile in her voice, "though the chef has assured me that he took particular care with preparing _yours_ as we know that not everything is too your taste."

Both of the female dinner guests were halfway through their respective meals when Jumin was entranced by quizzical eyes glancing up at him. "Jumin," she said, concern in her voice, "your dinner's getting cold." He picked up the fork and knife out of instinct more than anything, but the first bite of fish melted in his mouth so quickly that he could not help but rush to take another bite. The chef would be getting a raise.

Soon, Elizabeth the 3rd was lapping at the wine with enthusiasm. Jumin smiled and noted that even in her birthday festivities, she did not spill a single drop on her snow-like coat. When she had licked the crystal sparkling clean, she moved to take her leave.

"Wait sweetie," his darling said from across the table, "don't you want to see what Daddy got you?"

Jumin froze, fork halfway to his mouth. His heart began beating quickly and he wondered if this is what panic felt like. Elizabeth the 3rd looked at him expectantly, preparing to alight from the chair with disdain at the inevitable disappointment.

A soft clearing of the throat from the other side of the table drew his attention to the woman sitting across from him and she made a pointed nod of her head, gesturing to his left elbow. He looked down and it was the small, square box she had given him in the entryway. He set down his fork and picked up the box, holding it out to Elizabeth the 3rd as she indulged in her curiosity, poking it gently with her nose before pawing at it impatiently.

He took off the lid, as excited as she was to see it and was rewarded with a circle of sparkles nestled on a small pink cushion. Jumin picked up the collar carefully and inspected the double rows of gems, unable to tell by his untrained eye if they were crystals or diamonds. The glinting stones drew Elizabeth the 3rd's attention and she hesitantly stretched out a paw to his lap, then made the small jump to look at her present more closely.

"Wow Elizabeth! How pretty! Why don't you let Daddy put it on you?"

Jumin took the cue and latched it gingerly around the cat's neck. While her luxurious fur hid most of the band, when she moved her head, stones would catch the light and twinkle through the white strands. Properly adorned, she hopped off of his lap silently and made her way into the next room.

"Yes, little empress. Go to your beloved box and bathe in your styrofoam heaven," his wife said with a sardonic smirk and a drink of wine.

He stared at her in that instant, determined to commit this exact moment to memory. Her hair was down, flowing past her shoulders in a gentle wave and her skin was almost golden in the candlelight. The hand that she held the wine glass with was bare save for the simple band of platinum on her ring finger. A matching necklace drew his eye to her kissable neck and up to the pulsing of her throat. With the glass obscuring the lower half of her face he was drawn to her eyes, fixated on him. He almost missed the flush that made its way down her face.

Almost.

She set the glass down and suddenly seemed shy, looking down and away, only peeking at him through her soft, touchable hair. His fingers nearly twitched with the urge to run his hand through her tresses. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I know you've been so busy with the end of the year and your new projects, but I knew it would have been devastation if you couldn't make it tonight."

She did not specify whom would be devastated.

Jumin could barely believe his ears. After all she had done for him, she was apologizing to _him_. He stared at the hesitant expression on her face and vowed that he would apologize properly, with fervor, later in the evening.

"How did you…" he trailed off, taking his own sip of wine. It was sweet and heady; a good year.

"Jaehee," she said, turning to face him a little more, "I asked her to get a copy of your schedule so I could make the arrangements. She really didn't want to but then Seven got involved and, well," she sighed and looked up at him with a winsome smile. "I really think you should give her a vacation."

"Hmm," he contemplated, pleased with the fact that he would not have to fire her. "A day after the reports are due would not go amiss."

Her eyes narrowed, but the smile kept her expression soft. "A week, at least. She's been panicking all afternoon about losing her job."

Jumin shook his head, "The company is too busy for Assistant Kang to be absent for an extended period of time. No. Two days."

While he had always been a natural at negotiations in the meeting room, Jumin Han, director and heir to the global C&R International had no chance against the look in her eyes and the sway in her hips as she sashayed around the edge of the table to perch lightly on his lap.

"Five days," she said, her voice all business while her hands, loosening the knot in his tie were very much not.

"Three," he countered, wrapping his arms around her waist and leaning forward.

Just before they touched, her lips whispered "Four" against his. He smirked at the spoiled woman nestled against him.

"Deal," he conceded and proceeded to let her seal the deal, reveling in how much sweeter the wine tasted on her tongue.

Trivia  
Elizabeth the 3rd's birthday is on January 1st. I didn't find this out until I was mostly done, so I apologize for lack of New Year references.  
There actually is a wine for cats and dogs company. Elizabeth's wine is real! There is also a white version called MusCATo! Get some for your little emperor or empress at .  
Supposedly, the C&R headquarters building is the tallest in the country. Go big or go home!

Thanks for reading! I hope it made your day a little better!


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